Author Archive

NEW YORK, July 2, 2015 (WAFA) – Nine organizations and 34 individuals from the United States, Palestine, Israel and South Africa called on Wednesday on the US celebrity Oprah Winfrey to publicly distance herself from the companies of Israel billionaire Lev Leviev. Winfrey have recently worn Leviev diamonds on the cover of the May 2015, […]

The travel & tourism industry is one of the first and worst to be affected by all kinds of crises, be they environmental, economic or geopolitical. In an era of predominantly man-made global crises, the global leadership cannot shirk accountability. The United States claims to be the global leader, but there is no democratic way […]

Beijing, (People’s Daily Online) July 01, 2015 – Representatives of 57 prospective founding members of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) gathered in Beijing on Monday for the signing ceremony, with 50 of them endorsing the AIIB agreement. The bank is regarded as a bold attempt for China to expand its international influence and challenge […]

Kyodo Jul 1, 2015 – Japan’s population excluding resident foreigners totaled 126,163,576 as of Jan. 1, down 271,058 from a year earlier, the biggest decline since the current population survey started in 1968, the government said Wednesday. That was the sixth straight annual decline, with the data showing the drop is accelerating as the number […]

WikiLeaks Press Release, 1 July 2015 — The United States National Security Agency has been massively targeting phone numbers of top German ministers and public officials responsible for commerce, finances, economics and agriculture – including even Angela Merkel’s personal assistant. WikiLeaks publishes today, 1 July 2015, a list of 69 German government telephone numbers from […]

It used to be possible to promise confidentiality to sources – guaranteeing protection of their identities, even on pain of jail – in countries where legal source protection frameworks were robust. But, internationally, ethical commitments to, and legal protections for, journalistic sources are being undercut by surveillance (both mass surveillance and targeted surveillance), and mandatory […]

Australian Greek communities are preparing for an influx of migrating relatives as Greece’s economy crumbles and its banks bolt their doors. Global sharemarkets suffered from panic selling on Monday in the wake of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras pulling out of negotiations late last week for emergency funding in order to put the options to […]

By Rehman Chishti The shocking attack last week at a peaceful Tunisian tourist resort has shown us once again that terror continues to be a threat. There is no question that the group behind this attack, which refers to itself as the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (Isis) or as “Islamic State” is an […]

A compilation of stories of interesting events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 29 June 2015 (12 Ramadaan 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines below to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS 2015 The […]

The Society of Biblical Studies, a US-based organisation that promotes responsible travel in the Holy Land, is to hold its 2015 National Conference between 18-19 September 2015 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, under the theme of “Christians and the Holy Land: What does the Lord Require?” The conference is designed to better acquaint the estimated 1.6 million […]

Bangkok — Last week, both the UN World Tourism Organisation and the World Travel & Tourism Council, the two apex bodies of the global travel industry, issued perfunctory condemnations after the spate of attacks in Tunisia, Kuwait and France. That put them on the record as having done their duty to do something. However, the […]

Three churches will debate resolutions this month to divest from companies supporting the Israeli occupation. The Episcopal Church, United Church of Christ and Mennonite Church USA will each discuss Palestine during their conventions. The discussions are taking place amid strenuous efforts by the Zionist lobby to counter the campaign for boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) […]

The spectre haunting Europe today is the sceptre of a terminal, and possibly irreversible, decline of its economic, political and, above all, cultural influence in the world. How serious is its existential angst? George Steiner, a much-acclaimed novelist, critic, cultural philosopher and academic, seeks to answer this question with unmatched eloquence, erudition and sensitivity. Earlier […]

Can a 1975 Emergency-like situation recur again, is a question that is wrongly posed. What needs to be considered is whether authoritarianism can once again emerge to threaten the democratic system. All the basic causes for the Emergency four decades ago — a crisis of the political system, problems of stability and economic discontent — […]

VATICAN CITY: The Vatican on Friday signed a historic first accord with Palestine, two years after officially recognizing it as a state. The accord, a treaty covering the activities of he Church in the parts of the holy land under Palestinian control, was the first since the Vatican recognized Palestine as a state in February […]

One current development is ominous. Soft Hindutva is overtaking the print and electronic media. They go out of their way to blackout the minority point of view. One glaring example is a recent statement by a Muslim woman from Mumbai. She said that, as a Muslim, she could not get a house in any posh […]

You say you care about work-life balance, but do you, really? A new survey found that while women small business owners claim to value work-life balance more than men, women are less likely than men to actually take steps to achieve that elusive goal. Capital One’s latest Spark Business Barometer polled small business owners about […]

White Americans are the biggest terror threat in the United States, according to a study by the New America Foundation. The Washington-based research organization did a review of “terror” attacks on US soil since Sept. 11, 2001 and found that most of them were carried out by radical anti-government groups or white supremacists. Almost twice […]

Bangkok, 23 June 2015 – Creative Thai entrepreneurs with good business ideas are being invited to apply for a contest that could take them to a global creativity championship in Copenhagen between Nov 17-18, 2015. It is a great opportunity for young Thai tourism professionals to take the concept of “Thainess” to a new level, […]

The book contains dozens of harrowing photographs, many of badly injured children, taken by Gilbert during his stay in Gaza last summer, although the most graphic were excluded. He describes his camera as “my Kalashnikov”, saying that this kind of medical documentation of war is a powerful weapon – and one that is feared by […]

Australia has been exposed as a safe haven for corrupt funds from overseas after a pair of top lawyers were caught on video explaining how regional leaders steal money from their own people and park it in bank accounts here. Covertly-filmed footage using operatives posing as Australian businessmen opens an unprecedented window into how Australian […]

New Delhi – The Home Ministry on Tuesday cancelled registration to receive foreign funds of over 4,400 non-governmental organisations including Delhi University, Supreme Court Bar Association and Kabir, an NGO started by deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia. All associations were given proper notice by the Foreigners Division of the home ministry with adequate time to […]

June 15 – As you surely heard, Sudan’s president, Omar al-Bashir, was able to visit South Africa and then fly out today ahead of calls for his arrest for charges pending against him in the International Criminal Court stemming from the genocide in Darfur. He was able to get away because some in South Africa […]

Liberal senator Cory Bernardi’s inquiry into halal food has attracted a flood of hateful and sometimes downright bizarre submissions. A month after Senator Bernardi successfully set up a Senate committee inquiry into the “third party certification of food”, the probe has already attracted 220 written submissions from the Australian public. While the inquiry is supposed […]

Kyodo Jun 18, 2015, LONDON – Taking a quick nap at your desk or even in a meeting is not an uncommon sight in Japanese offices, but it’s something you’re unlikely to find in Britain, where workers are expected to remain alert at all times. In Japan, the practice is known as inemuri — taking […]

A compilation of progressive, positive, inspiring and motivating events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 22 June 2015 (05 Ramadan 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines below to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS […]

Last week, a 21-year-old white male walked into a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina and shot dead nine people attending an evening Bible study. The young man, Dylann Storm Roof, was caught not long after the incident. He confessed to the killings of the nine African-American in an act that the local police […]

One in four apps on an Android mobile phone is loaded with an excessive number of un-related “trackers” that are funnelling valuable personal information to third parties. Popular games apps My Talking Tom and Swamp Attack in the Google Play store are among the worst apps, each loaded with more than 20 “connected trackers”, a […]

A simple five-day diet that mimics fasting can bring a host of health benefits, including cutting the risk of heart disease and cancer and boosting the immune system, American scientists believe. A team at the University of Southern California has developed the diet, which they call the ‘Fasting Mimicking Diet’ (FMD), which only needs to […]

A day after the massacre, suspected gunman Dylann Roof was in custody, arrested in neighbouring North Carolina. But even the manner of his arrest says a lot about race relations in the US, particularly with regards to the police. Roof, suspected of murdering nine people in cold blood, was escorted from a building with police […]

Police are investigating the shooting of nine African Americans at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston as a hate crime committed by a white man. Unfortunately, it’s not a unique event in American history. Black churches have long been a target of white supremacists who burned and bombed them in an effort to terrorize the black […]

The excuses to call a white, male mass-killer anything but “a terrorist” are familiar – they’re part of a refrain repeated over and over again when a horrific crime intended to terrify a group of people is committed by a white man. It’s a refrain of denial. (The same denial happened when Elliot Rodger penned […]

By Terrell Jermaine Starr Who gets labeled a terrorist is usually a product of race, theirs and white-dominated newsrooms. So far, we know that Dylan Roof, a 21-year-old white man, is in custody in connection with the shooting at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, in Charleston, S.C., where nine people were killed. Images of Roof […]

June 18, 2015 (Pew Research Cenre) – As the last of this year’s crop of U.S. college graduates march across the stage to receive their diplomas, more of them than ever are likely to be from overseas. In fact, a new Pew Research Center analysis of degrees granted by American colleges and universities shows that foreign […]

New York: Four Muslim men who claimed in a lawsuit that they were put on the government’s no-fly list because they refused FBI efforts to recruit them as informants to spy on their mosques have been told that they are now free to fly. The news came on the eve of a federal court hearing […]

Tokyo: The government may ease visa requirements for foreign ski instructors by March next year to cope with a recent surge in foreign tourists visiting resorts in Japan, officials said Thursday. The move comes amid rising calls from some of the nation’s prominent ski resorts asking for a greater number of foreign instructors, said a […]

Auckland: A 30-year-old Sikh man working in New Zealand was barred from a club because of his turban, prompting him to lodge a complaint alleging religious discrimination. Gurpreet Singh, a real estate agent was not allowed to enter the Manurewa Cosmopolitan Club in Auckland for lunch with colleagues as he breached the club’s no-headwear policy. […]

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo invited 400 orphans to a fast breaking gathering at the State Palace on Thursday and he used the occasion to present bicycles to ten selected orphans. The President presented the bicycles to the orphans who correctly answered one of his ten questions. The questions asked were related to the Prophet, angles, […]

An anti-Islam, freedom-of-speech rally will take place outside the Tucson Islamic Center on Saturday, July 18. The event is modeled after a protest at the Phoenix Islamic Cultural Center on May 29, which purportedly was a reaction to the two men who opened fire on a Muhammed cartoon drawing contest in Garland, Texas, earlier this […]

By Marwan Asmar Dust flew as I kicked the ground, little particles of dirt slowly settling around me. It was then that I realised I was standing on the land of Palestine — a land that I was away from for the past 30 years, a land that’s a distant memory. After nearly two decades […]

PANAJI: ‘All India Hindu Convention’, organized by the right-wing organization Hindu Janajagruti Samiti, on Wednesday demanded a ban on convent schools, claiming that these schools do not allow Hindu students to follow religious traditions. The convention also demanded a ban on cow slaughter in the entire country. “Hindu students studying in convent schools are barred […]

Bangkok – When one of Southeast Asia’s largest Buddhist-majority countries launches a tourism outreach to attract Muslim visitors, it clearly has a much wider significance than just a travel industry development. Although the primary goal of the tourism authorities is to boost visitor arrivals, expenditure and average length of stay, the Thai government is also […]

For the most part, in the mainstream U.S. press at least, the decorum that forbids use of the A-word remains in place. Yet increasingly, as Israel continues to colonize the West Bank with settlers, and its army ensures their dominion over the lands they occupy, adhering to the A-word ban requires shielding one’s eyes, or, […]

A compilation of progressive, positive, inspiring and motivating events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 15 June 2015 (28 Sha’baan 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines below to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS […]

The contrast in weather could not have been more glaring for the 69 members of the all-girls ensemble who had recently arrived from Malaysia to perform at the Carnegie Hall in New York: from the tropical heat and sunshine that are characteristics of the Southeast Asian nation to the blizzard that was pounding New York […]

Israel has decided to seize some 202 acres of privately owned Palestinian land in the West Bank to make a new dumping grounds for its illegal settlements. The lands belong to around 140 Palestinian families from Rammoun and Deir Dibwan near Ramallah, the International Middle East Media Center reported on Sunday. The targeted area contains […]

Fortunately, India is too diverse a place for any Modi to flourish. A truly authoritarian leader like Suharto won’t be able to flourish for long in India. Sixty five years of deeply flawed democratic processes have nevertheless created an India where someone like Mr. Modi can enjoy only limited successes. And he still seems to […]

Muslims and Jews in the United Kingdom have teamed up to work toward a common goal — eradicating hunger in their city of Nottingham. The Salaam Shalom Kitchen, or SaSh, is a project of the Nottingham Liberal Synagogue and Himmah, an Islamic social justice group. Members of the two worship centers are joining forces on […]

The trend of asking people opposed to the politics of the NDA to leave India was probably kicked off by senior BJP leader Giriraj Singh in April last year. He had blatantly asked people “opposed to Modi” to go to Pakistan since they would have no place in India. Last month, minister of state for […]

Travel & tourism would be a major beneficiary of peace between Israel and Palestine, contributing a projected $760 million increase in GDP for Palestine and $1.1 billion for Israel over a ten-year 2015-2024 period, according to a study release on June 8 by the RAND Corporation, a prominent U.S. think tank. The study says that […]

A compilation of progressive, positive, inspiring and motivating events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 08 June 2015 (21 Sha’baan 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS 2015 […]

The American gambling magnate and major Republican party donor Sheldon Adelson is hosting a closed-door meeting of pro-Israel billionaires and activists at his Las Vegas casino this weekend, to combat the burgeoning movement on US university campuses to boycott the Jewish state. The gathering comes amid growing Israeli alarm at the rise of the decade-old […]

Filipino and Japanese experts have warned of the continuous degradation of the Boracay ecosystem with the unabated commercial development and unmonitored snorkeling and diving activities as among the tourism-related activities in the island. Takahiro Morita, senior representative of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) in the Philippines, said the threat of degradation was primarily on […]

Kathmandu, UN News Centre, 5 June 2015 – Against the backdrop of Nepal’s humming capital of Kathmandu, in a centre just off Durbar Square, it would be difficult to miss the elderly woman smiling warmly in a bright red sari. She is among those offering traditional, homespun goods, the cultural heritage of the country that […]

Beijing (China Daily), 2015-06-02 — As China’s ongoing Clean Your Plate campaign has gained momentum since it began in 2013, many managers of restaurants－especially buffets－say they have consistently been able to meet their goals of stopping food waste. But it hasn’t always been easy. Four guests at the Xiang Wei Qing buffet restaurant in Lanzhou, […]

The Tourism Promotion Organization for Asia Pacific Cities is seeking applications for participants in the Korean Culture and Language Immersion Program (K-CLIP 2015) to take place from 2 to 15 August at Pusan National University, Busan Metropolitan City, Republic of Korea. The main purpose of “K-CLIP 2015” is the enhancement of youth exchange and cultivation […]

Sanya, Hainan Island — Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi is famous for his far-sighted dictum, “There is enough in this world for everyone’s need but not for everyone’s greed.” While the human race is notorious for ignoring those insightful words, the animal world has it embedded into its DNA. In a wide-ranging interview at the […]

The US Senate on Tuesday passed a bill that would end the bulk collection of millions of Americans’ phone records, the most significant surveillance reform for decades and a direct result of NSA whistleblower Edward Snowden’s revelations to the Guardian two years ago. Senators voted 67-32 to pass the USA Freedom Act, which overwhelmingly cleared […]

An 82-year-old Sikh grandfather was brutally beaten with a steel pipe by a man who reportedly targeted him for looking like one of “those people”. Piara Singh was attacked outside his gurdwara in Fresno California where he was preparing free meals to give to the homeless. He suffered a punctured lung and head injuries and […]

A compilation of progressive, positive, inspiring and motivating events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 01 June 2015 (14 Sha’baan 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines below to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS […]

Beijing, (People’s Daily Online), May 22, 2015 – China’s State Council unveiled a national plan recently, dubbed “Made in China 2025”. It is the first 10-year action plan designed to transform China from a manufacturing giant into a world manufacturing power. Miao Wei, Minister of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, summarized the main […]

Bangkok, 28 May 2015, UNESCAP media release – The United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) today opened a state-of-the-art Accessibility Centre at the ESCAP Conference Centre in Bangkok to support the participation of persons with disabilities in United Nations intergovernmental processes and meetings. In a landmark move to make […]

Abu Dhabi: Mir Rayyan Sultan’s beloved grandfather is facing gradual loss of vision, and the 11-year-old often wonders what it might be like for him. So, when his school offered him a chance to experience a day as a special needs individual, he volunteered to go about his day blindfolded. “I thought it would be […]

BEIJING, May 30 (Xinhua) — In Washington, Cuba’s removal from the U.S. list of so-called “state sponsors of terrorism” was hailed as a diplomatic accomplishment. However, while most of the world is willing to see a thaw in U.S.-Cuba ties after more than five decades of enmity, the delisting also raised more questions about the […]

Beijing, (chinadaily.com.cn) 2015-05-28 – China has announced plans to boost the Belt and Road trade by creating economic corridors and investing nearly $900 billion in countries along the route. Vice-Premier Zhang Gaoli said the country is mulling six economic corridors with countries along the Belt and Road trade route to better connect Asia and Europe […]

An historic conference on Religious Tourism to be organised by the UN World Tourism Organisation between June 15-16 in Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus Christ (Peace be upon Him), may facilitate the removal of one of the greatest obstacles to global travel & tourism flows and advance a settlement of one of the world’s thorniest […]

The Wikipedia says Operation Iraqi Freedom started on the 20th of March, 2003, which is just another reason why you shouldn’t believe anything you read in the Wikipedia (don’t, just don’t). That’s not correct, the war began a day earlier. See, I was there on the night the war really started, at precisely 2200 hours, […]

Bangkok — The global uber-rich who control the vast majority of the world’s wealth are responsible for an equivalent proportion of global problems, while the billions of poor pay the heaviest price, according to a caucus of Asia-Pacific civil society (CSOs) that concluded here on 18 May 2015. Representatives of 125 non-governmental organisations, convening in […]

A compilation of progressive, positive, inspiring and motivating events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 25 May 2015 (06 Sha’baan 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines below to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS […]

Beijing, (China Daily) 2015-05-23 – Shenzhen resident Chen Xing is among the lucky ones whose job is also her passion. The 40-year-old loves playing golf, and is the director of the club member affair department with Shenzhen Golf Association, an non-government organization that aims to promote golf among Shenzhen residents and beyond, and the only […]

Dubbing the Narendra Modi Government’s performance in its first year as a “disaster”, CPI (M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury on Tuesday said the NDA dispensation at the Centre will be better known for bypassing parliamentary procedures. “We are seeing a very dangerous and disastrous trend emerging after the BJP came to power an year ago. […]

William Binney, a 31-year NSA veteran, blew the whistle on the agency when he realized technology that he had developed to protect Americans was being used to spy on them. In a wide-ranging, 45-minute discussion (produced by Josh Scheer with support from KPFK Radio), he and Truthdig Editor-in-Chief Robert Scheer discussed who’s responsible for the […]

WASHINGTON, D.C. (www.Gallup.com) May 14, 2015 — Although the leadership of the U.S. earned the highest approval ratings of any major world power asked about in 2014, approval of U.S. leadership dropped to a new low in Africa last year, and tumbling support in Central Asia erased the big gains in the larger Asia region […]

A compilation of stories of interesting events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 18 May 2015 (29 Rajab 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines below to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS 2015 The […]

The Indian Prime Minister Mr Narendra Modi is in China this week for an official visit. He no doubt will see just how far ahead China is of India on just about every aspect of development. Anyone who travels through the world’s most populous country cannot but be impressed by the smooth highways, well-functioning airports […]

Beijing, (Xinhua) May 13, 2015 – The United States, a self-proclaimed human rights watchdog, needs to examine itself critically and improve its own human rights record before blaming other countries for their violations. The UN Human Rights Council reviewed the U.S. human rights record Monday and found that the “preacher of human rights” itself was […]

On 15 May 2014, an Israeli Border Police officer took aim at Nadim Nuwara and pulled the trigger of his M16 rifle. The live bullet struck Nuwara, 17, in the chest and exited through his back, killing him at the scene. CCTV cameras captured the shooting, allowing for detailed forensic video, sound and spatial analysis […]

New Delhi – Signs of roads in the national capital named after Muslim personalities such as Emperor Akbar and Firozshah have been defaced and posters of the right-wing group Shiv Sena Hindustan were pasted on them. The names on the signs were blackened late on Wednesday. The posters in Hindi read: “Islamisation in India will […]

Bangkok – Regional and international ecotourism experts are to convene for a May 19-21 conference in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar to discuss ecotourism in protected areas. According to the publicity material, topics include using ecotourism to finance nature conservation, transboundary heritage trails and much more! Before reaching for the sky, Myanmar needs to focus on […]

Bangkok — Changing lifestyles and increasing upward mobility amongst women is leading to a new kind of gender equality — women are becoming just as heavy drinkers as men. A report on harmful alcohol use in the OECD countries, released by the Paris-based organisation on May 12, says, “People with more education and higher socioeconomic […]

A compilation of progressive, positive, inspiring and motivating events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 11 May 2015 (22 Rajab 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines below to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS […]

Dubai – Malaysian Tourism Minister Dato’ Seri Mohamed Nazri bin Abdul Aziz has publicly provided his official commitment to ensure that all ASEAN member countries display the ASEAN logo at their country pavilions at future travel trade shows worldwide. He made this pledge at the Malaysian press conference in his capacity as representative of a […]

The U.S. airlines’ dossier pointing fingers at the Gulf airlines over alleged subsidies and anti-competitive actions is so parochial and pathetically flawed that it does not deserve the respectability being showered on it. Indeed, it is a reflection of U.S. corporate hypocrisy, a clear indicator of how the Americans react when they get beaten at […]

Beijing, (chinadaily.com.cn) 2015-05-06 – US-based taxi app provider Uber has been frequently hitting the headlines in recent months for being the target of regulatory crackdowns or law suits with regulators and taxi companies in a number of cities outside the US. In the latest incident, its office in Guangzhou, South China’s Guangdong province, was raided […]

Dubai – Chief executives of Etihad, Qatar Airways and Emirates are due in Washington DC for May 14 meetings with U.S. government officials to rebut allegations that their airlines are subsidised by their respective governments, giving them an unfair competitive advantage over U.S. airlines and their code-share and alliance partners. At the Arabian Travel Market […]

Sydney – Thousands of airport staff are working without federal police or ASIO clearance, security experts warn in the wake of a drug smuggler’s claim that Sydney baggage handlers were part of his criminal network. Peter Gardner, a 26-year-old dual Australian-New Zealand citizen who could face execution in China after he was caught last year […]

There were once 600 homes in the village. Prickly-pear cactus are scattered about. The 800 wells dug into the hill bear witness to the lives and memories the JNF sought to erase. Only the cemetery remains intact, rows of neglected graves surrounded by barbed wire, which the DPs say the Israeli authorities have forbidden them […]

United Nations, (UN News Centre), 4 May 2015 – The head of the United Nations body tasked with setting the global environmental agenda today stressed the need to limit the use of dangerous chemicals and to find a solution to the masses of electronic waste building up around the world, as a Conference of Parties […]

Beijing, (China Daily), 2015-05-06 – People should switch off their smartphones for an hour every day to prevent the use of mobile apps from eroding family ties and restricting direct communication between people, say researchers. The call was prompted by a survey carried out by Marriage and Family, a monthly magazine affiliated with the All-China […]

Dubai — Thailand has launched a new campaign to position the Buddhist-majority kingdom as a Muslim-friendly destination and attract a larger share of the rapidly growing market for halal tourism. Launching the campaign at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) on 06 May 2015, Minister of Tourism and Sports Mrs Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul noted that it would […]

A compilation of progressive, positive, inspiring and motivating events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 04 May 2015 (15 Rajab 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines below to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS […]

GAZA, April 30 (Xinhua) — The daily living situation is seriously miserable in the blockaded Gaza Strip, where unemployment rate in the impoverished coastal enclave climbed to 60 percent, a senior Palestinian official told Xinhua in an exclusive interview on the eve of the International Labor Day. Ma’moun Abu Shahla, minister of labor in the […]

Bangkok – A delegation of Palestinian tourism officials and private sector executives has just completed a study tour of Thailand as part of efforts by the Japanese and Thai governments to help upgrade the quality of the tourism industry in the Israeli-occupied state. Funding for the delegation’s visit between April 26-May 2 was provided by […]

The central government will start the construction of a 143-km railway line from Makassar to Parepare, both cities in South Sulawesi, in early July and will buy the tracks direct from China, an official has confirmed. Director General of Railways of the Transportation Ministry Hermanto Dwi Atmoko said the local administrations had committed to complete […]

NEW DELHI: A US panel tracking international religious freedom has, in its latest report on India, noted that religious minorities in the country were exposed to “derogatory” comments by leaders of the ruling BJP as well as “violent attacks and forced conversions by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP)” since the […]

LESHAN, China – When immediate past PATA Chairman Scott Supernaw opened the Chapters Colloquium at the PATA annual summit on 25 April, he made a stunning public admission. Referring to a restructuring of chapters now under way, he took a page from PATA history, saying, “I personally think we made a mistake that we forced […]

A compilation of progressive, positive, inspiring and motivating events and developments in the world of Islam for the week ending 27 April 2015 (08 Rajab 1436). Pls click on any of the headlines below to go to the story. ============ A WORD FROM MY SPONSORS: TOURISM MALAYSIA MALAYSIA TO CELEBRATE A YEAR OF GREAT FESTIVALS […]

By Lindsey Kaufman A year ago, my boss announced that our large New York ad agency would be moving to an open office. After nine years as a senior writer, I was forced to trade in my private office for a seat at a long, shared table. It felt like my boss had ripped off […]

Peace Through Tourism

How Travel & Tourism Can Help Restore the Balance in the Emerging New World Order

"The travel & tourism buzzword of the 21st century will be the search for balance."

That forecast was made by Imtiaz Muqbil, Executive Editor, Travel Impact Newswire, in the monthly strategic intelligence publication of PATA, the Pacific Asia Travel Association, way back in February 1999. Today, it is proving spot-on as the word "balance" resonates across all industry sectors.

Travel industry conferences seeking a speaker who can offer some unique historical hindsight, unconventional foresight and thought-provoking insight on how to rebuild and restore the balance in Asia Pacific travel & tourism can email Imtiaz Muqbil by clicking here.

There Can Be No Sustainability Without Spirituality

The New World Order will be dominated by a resurgence of spirituality.

Imtiaz Muqbil claims to be the world's only travel journalist to have visited the Holy Spots of all the major world religions -- Lumbhini, Bodhgaya, Varanasi, Nalanda, Jerusalem, Vatican City, Amritsar, Makkah, Madinah, Najaf and Karbala, as well as religious spots such as Angkor Wat, Bagan, Shwedagon Pagoda, Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Temple of The Tooth, Somnath Temple, Samarkand, Bukhara and many other great mosques, shrines, temples and cathedrals worldwide.

Sustainability, ecotourism and health & wellness travel have all become so 'yesterday'. Prepare for the new generation of travel in the New World Order and raise the bar of your next conference, management forum or seminar by hearing Imtiaz Muqbil's thoughts on this unmatched game- and life-changing experience.

==========

Secrets of Thailand's Tourism Success

Why the Amazing Kingdom is notching up record-breaking arrivals, and what challenges it faces next

The Thai tourism industry has become by far the Kingdom's most successful service sector, one of its leading job-creators and foreign exchange-earners. Behind this success lies a fascinating history of great branding campaigns, policy and regulatory changes, budgetary bunfights, strategic thinking and influence of Royal events.

But this success has now bred a new set of management challenges that may be more difficult to overcome.

Travel Impact Newswire Executive Editor Imtiaz Muqbil has been monitoring the pulse of the Thai travel industry full-time since 1981. Industry conferences and management meetings wishing to benefit from a treasure trove of insights and hindsights on one of the world's great tourism success stories can drop an email here: imtiaz@travel-impact-newswire.com.

============

The Rise of the Whistle-Blowers

For 15 years (January 1997-July 2012), Imtiaz Muqbil penned a hard-hitting fortnightly column called “Soul-Searching” in the so-called “newspaper you can trust”. In July 2012, the column was gagged, with no explanation.

Over the years, four columns had explicitly forecast the rise of whistle-blowers -- a prediction now coming 100% true. Read the four columns by clicking on the links below.

Too Bad Your Ad Is Not in This Spot

Space available for unique ads that demonstrate commitment to helping physically-challenged people, building global peace, improving social and cultural cohesion, providing opportunities for the under-privileged, alleviating poverty and combatting global injustice & corruption.

If your product is not meeting any of the above goals, please advertise elsewhere.

===============

News Vs Noise

A Unique Course for Travel & Tourism Communicators In The Internet Era

By far the vast majority of media communications in the travel industry is boring, banal and bland. The same way it has been for the last 30 years.

Travel Impact Newswire Executive Editor Imtiaz Muqbil has designed a special communications course to help upgrade both the context and the content of industry media material, and make it more interesting, readable and, most important, relevant.